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Sunday September 13, 2020 3 STATE TIMES NEWS JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir Congress president G A Mir on Saturday expressed concern over the growing number of COVID- 19 cases in the union territo- ry and demanded a fact sheet on the facilities avail- able in the hospitals to meet the challenge. He also demanded immedi- ate restoration of 4G mobile internet services and said the lack of facility is causing a lot of hardships to the stu- dent community who were forced to stay home and attend virtual classes due to the pandemic. The COVID-19 cases are increasing with each passing day and there are reports of lack of adequate facilities including shortage of oxygen in Jammu hospitals which is a cause of concern and reflects mismanagement and mishandling of the situation, Mir told reporters here. He said there is a need for immediate necessary steps on war footing to augment the facilities to meet the "worsening situation". Government should come out with a detailed statement of facts to assure the people about the facilities to deal with the emerging scenario, Mir said. Expressing his displeasure over the continued suspen- sion of 4G mobile internet services in most parts of Jammu and Kashmir, he said the students are the worst-hit as they are not able to attend their online classes due to connectivity problems in view of the low speed. The government should not play with the career of the children, he said and ques- tioned the arbitrary charging of tuition fee by private schools. On introduction of domicile certificates, he said it seems that the government is not worried about the safety of the people and is adamant to line them up by rejecting the genuine request to treat Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC) the same as domicile document. Mir also took a dig at the central government over the setting up of a delimitation commission for J-K and claimed that only the ruling party is involved in the exer- cise with ground officials "to create a road map for the exercise". He said his party is keep- ing a track on the situation and will do whatever required to deal with the issue in accordance with the law. Referring to the upcoming third phase of back to village programme of the adminis- tration to address the prob- lems being faced by the peo- ple in the nook and corner of the UT, he claimed that the earlier such exercises proved futile as not a single work was carried out. He demanded a CBI inquiry into the recent attempt of temple land grad- ing in the heart of Jammu and said his party would con- tinue highlighting the double standards of the BJP on the issue. Vice President PCC Raman Bhalla, Chief Spokesperson Ravinder Sharma, General Secretaries Th. Balwan Singh, Th. Manmohan Singh, EX- MLAs Ashok Sharma, Chairman OBC Deptt Suresh Dogra and Secretary PCC Neeraj Gupta were also present in the press con- ference. As COVID-19 cases surge in J&K, Cong calls for fact sheet on available facilities in hospitals JKPCC Chief G.A Mir talking to reporters. STATE TIMES NEWS LEH: Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, R K Mathur was called upon by various dele- gations including Executive Councilor (Educ.), LAHDC, Leh Konchok Stanzin. The Executive Councilor raised certain border area related issues in Changthang region and through a memo- randum requested the Lt. Governor for special quota in all institutions to the Border students, special quota for border aspirants in paramili- tary and army recruitments, exemption of Inmarsat satel- lite phone charges at the bor- der area and allotment of land for border people in Leh. Jigmet Geldan Sarpanch, Khemi through a memoran- dum requested the Lt. Governor for issuance of the actual line of control certifi- cate to the people of this place, installation of commu- nication tower including Airtel, up-gradation of Middle School to high School and up-gradation of Medical Aid Centre to Public Health Centre with an ambulance service. Gen. Shatup Chamba, President, All Ladakh Gonpa Association presented a writ- ten request to the Lt. Governor to take up with the Government of India to con- fer India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna to His Holiness the Dalai Lama considering his unconditional and compassionate service to humanity. Councilor Tangtse, Tashi Namgyal and Councilor Nyoma Thupstan Wangchuk requested the Lt. Governor for installing VSATs in Panchayat Ghars in Changthang region to enable the students in the region to continue with their online classes which has been recently hampered. Tsewang Chostar, President, LBA Zanskar along with its members in a follow-up meeting reiterated their request to grant district status to Zanskar, to speed up the work on Nimoo- Padum-Darcha road, to give recognition to Bhoti lan- guage and to improve med- ical facilities with minor operation theatre (MOT) and availability of specialized doc- tors. Arjun Khanna, Director, Biosash Company met with the Lt. Governor and apprised him of the great potential of sea-buckthorn and its high commercial value. He requested for assis- tance in collection of sea- buckthorn berries and expressed desire to set up a unit in Ladakh. A delegation of All Ladakh Hotels and Guest House Association (ALHGHA) called upon the Lt. Governor to express gratitude for the release of pending instal- ments for the 11 hotels/guesthouses that had been pending since 2013 from the erstwhile J&K Government and also for ini- tiating the process of subsidy disbursal for several pending cases that were approved under the J&K Tourism, J&K Government. The President (ALHGHA) made a request to the Lt. Governor to release the subsidy amount in a lump sum rather than installments consider- ing the serious loss to the tourism industry due to Covid-19 and border tensions. Several delegations call on LG Mathur LG R.K Mathur interacting with a delegation. STATE TIMES NEWS JAMMU: Expressing grave concern over alarming spike in COVID-19 cases in Jammu and Kashmir particu- larly in the past few days, National Conference Provincial President Devender Singh Rana on Saturday urged the adminis- tration to take proactive steps and detail senior officers as empowered exclusive authori- ties to monitor, superintend and coordinate the function- ing and management of healthcare infrastructure and facilities therein to ensure best possible treatment to COVOD-19 patients. "While frontline workers are doing exemplary job in fight- ing the virus at the peril of their own and families' lives, there are certain gaps which need to be bridged", Mr Rana said. Rana said the shortage of oxygen and dysfunctional ven- tilators in the hospitals, creat- ing bottlenecks in the treat- ment, are a matter of grave concern. He also referred to complaints of unhygienic con- ditions prevailing in the quar- antine centres and urged the government to take immedi- ate corrective steps. The Provincial President said that shortage of supplies at this critical juncture is unacceptable and the health administration should wake up to the medical exigency and work out action plans keeping in view the require- ments on day to day and even hour to hour basis. For this empowered authorities are also needed at divisional and district levels, which should be charged exclusively with the responsibility of coordinating every nitty gritty of the COVID-19 management. He said the obtaining situa- tion calls for emergent and extraordinary measures in terms of strengthening diag- nostic facilities, pharmaceuti- cal supplies and manpower to address the trend. Of course, much is needed to be done by the people by observing pre- ventive protocols like main- taining social distance and wearing masks to meet the challenge, he added. Rana said the private hospi- tals and nursing homes should also be roped in to sup- plement the efforts in contain- ing the infection. In fact, these health care facilities should volunteer services for the service of mankind, he said, adding that if it is not now when they shall shoulder their social and corporate responsibility. The Provincial President expressed solidarity with those who have lost their dear ones due to the pandemic and urged the people to cooperate with the administration at all the levels in successful imple- mentation of guidelines and Standing Operating Procedures devised by various agencies. There has to be complete synergy between the adminis- tration, the frontline workers and the supervisory officers to achieve the objectives, he said. Rana complimented all those doctors, para-medics, lab technicians, sanitary workers, police and line departments for putting in their best at this crucial junc- ture to meet the unexpected medical exigency. Their efforts in defeating the virus will not go waste given their sense of commitment and dedication, the Provincial President observed. STATE TIMES NEWS JAMMU: A Sikh organisa- tion on Saturday launched a signature campaign here to press for the inclusion of Punjabi in the list of offi- cial languages in Jammu and Kashmir. The campaign by Sikh Youth Sewa Trust started outside a Gurdwara in Gandhi Nagar as part of its efforts to mobilize sup- port for fulfillment of their demand. "We have started this campaign to mobilize sup- port and press the govern- ment to include Punjabi in the list of official lan- guages in J-K," chairman of the trust Tajinder Pal Singh said. He said it is unfortunate that the Centre has not responded to their demand despite support from all sections of society. "It is a democracy and it is our right to raise our voice against any kind of discrimination," he said, adding that the Sikhs will continue their peaceful protest in support of their demands. "Till 1981, Punjabi lan- guage was a compulsory subject like Urdu in J-K. It was a part and parcel of the (erstwhile) constitution of Jammu and Kashmir before the abro- gation of its special status. Punjabi is popular among a large population of Jammu and Kashmir," Pal said. By excluding the Punjabi language, he said the cen- tral government has taken an "extreme step" which has caused resentment among minorities not only in Jammu and Kashmir, but among all Punjabi- speaking people across the country. Seeking intervention of Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, Singh said the sig- nature campaign has been initiated with an aim to bring the Punjabi-speak- ing people under the ban- ner for inclusion of Punjabi language in the J- K Official Language Bill 2020. The trust members also appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to review the "discrimina- tory move" and ensure inclusion of Punjabi as one of the official languages of the Union Territory. Sikhs start signature campaign for inclusion of Punjabi in official languages list in J-K Rana for proactive initiative to combat alarming COVID-19 spike STATE TIMES NEWS JAMMU: Prof Manoj K Dhar, Vice-Chancellor, University of Jammu expressed gratitude to the Chancellor for his vision- ary guidance and leadership which will go a long way in giv- ing impetus to the research, teaching and innovations in the University. He also thanked K. K. Sharma, Advisor for his con- stant encouragement in imbib- ing innovative methods and ideas in the sphere of educa- tion. In his address to the media, Prof Dhar talked about sever- al landmark decisions taken in the 86th University Council Meeting which was held under the Chairmanship of Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant Governor, J&K & Chancellor, University of Jammu on September 11, 2020 at Raj Bhawan. Prof Dhar informed that Chancellor emphasised for enhanced focus on the steps to be taken by the University of Jammu for the promotion of Dogri language and transla- tions of the existing works in other languages of the country to promote culture, traditions, and respect to feelings and aspirations of locals. Prof. Dhar said that an Advisory Committee of emi- nent persons, who have con- tributed to the growth and development of Dogri shall be constituted and a proposal of establishing a "Centre of Excellence in Dogri" will be developed within the shortest possible time. The Council favourably con- sidered the long pending demand of research students and approved increase in the research fellowship of research scholars from Rs 5000 to Rs 10000 per month and also gave nod to no fee hike for two years considering the difficult conditions created by Covid19, said Prof Dhar. The Council approved in principle the setting up of a Research Cluster in the University of Jammu for strengthening Research and its dissemination for the uplift- ment of society. In this regard, the University is planning to establish 7 cen- tres of excellence in various research areas which will immensely benefit the faculty of JU, College teachers, researchers and students of the region as well as UT. The cluster is expected to become functional in a State of art building and will be devel- oped with the help of the grants sanctioned to the University under RUSA. The Chancellor directed that the output from Research Centres in the said Cluster must develop an interface and identify the outcomes which can be relevant to the society. He emphasized upon assess- ment of impact of research undertaken in the Universities of J & K. The Council also approved the establishment of the Department of Journalism & Media Studies, two year Executive MBA Programme and Diploma in Museology & Archaeology, Prof Dhar said adding that establishment of the Department of Philosophy was also approved in view of the unique position and resources of the University in this region. Besides, approving 10 per- cent Supernumerary seats for College teachers, to enable them to undertake research work leading to award of Ph.D, Council also approved College teachers to act as supervisors/Co-Supervisors as per the UGC norms and University Statutes for guid- ing students, initially in the subjects of arts and humani- ties. Prof Dhar said that the Hon'ble Chancellor was cate- gorical that the best methods of teaching should be adopted along with the regular capacity building of teaching faculties of the university campuses. Chancellor & Lt Governor, J&K laid stress on developing a curriculum based on the feedback of students as con- tinual feedback is a globally accepted practice and it helps to understand and develop dif- ferent perspectives to the exist- ing pedagogy. He insisted that University of Jammu should take lead in implementation of National Education Policy 2020. The press briefing was attended by Prof Neetu Andotra, Registrar, University of Jammu and Dr Vinay Thusoo, Official Spokesperson, University of Jammu. JU to establish Centre of Excellence in Dogri Council gives nod to increase research fellowship from Rs 5000 to Rs 10,000 per month, no fee hike for 2 years VC JU Prof Manoj K Dhar addressing a press conference. STATE TIMES NEWS BARAMULLA: Continuing its endeavours in respect of slogan 'Reach out to every Child', the J&K Teachers Forum (JKTF) organised a day-long Teachers Conference in auditorium of Govt Degree College Baramulla. District Development Commissioner Baramulla, Dr G N Itoo was Chief Guest on the occasion while ADC Sopore, Principal Govt Degree College Baramulla, Chief Education Officer Baramulla and Principal DIET were the Guests of Honour. The conference, presided by Mohd Rafique Rather Chairman JKTF, was attended by a number of intellectuals, academicians, administrators, religious scholars, civil society mem- bers besides a large number of teachers. On the occasion, 18 teach- ers from 18 zones were con- ferred with (Best Teacher Award 2019-20) for their best performance during COVID-19 in reaching out to students through various non-conventional methods. The conference began with the welcome speech of Ishfaq Ahmad Shah, District President JKTF Baramulla. Speaking on the occasion, DDC Baramulla Dr G N Itoo, while acknowledging the role played by the Teachers Forum for better- ment of the education sys- tem, said that the organisa- tion has been helping the administration, even during difficult & complex situa- tions. "Teachers are really torch bearers but the way our teachers have put in their best in extremely adverse conditions is really appre- ciable. Services of teachers were used by the District administration during COVID-19 crisis and they were the frontline warriors besides performing other crucial assignments," he asserted, adding that he was delighted to attend the pro- gramme of JKTF, which always acts as a back-bone of education system of J&K. Recalling his period as DSEK, he said, that he has a close liaison with leaders of JKTF and applauded their role in assisting administration from time to time. He further appreciated the leadership of JKTF for awarding teachers for their best performance and hoped that the organisation will continue to encourage teachers by conferring such awards in future. Prof Dr Irshad Ahmad Wani, former Director Kashmir University North campus, while speaking on the occasion, highlighted role of teachers in new sys- tem. Chairman JKTF, Mohammad Rafique Rather lauded the teachers who worked hard to reach out to children during the pan- demic. He expressed satis- faction that the teachers have adopted non-conven- tional ways and worked tire- lessly for welfare of poor students despite all ordeals and challenges. Others who spoke on the occasion included Pir Nisar Ahmad General Secretary JKTF, Mohammed Ashraf Mir, Mohammed Amin Khan, Mohammad Ismail, Abdul Qayoom, Parvaiz Sajad ADC Sopore and G M Lone Chief Education Officer Baramulla. STATE TIMES NEWS SRINAGAR: police per- sonnel along with other COVID warriors have been on forefront of fight against the Coronavirus Pandemic. Many police officers, personnel have con- tracted this disease. To provide assistance to such personnel, Director General of Police (DGP), J&K Dilbag Singh on Saturday sanctioned Rs 6.95 lakh relief in favour of 136 police personnel of Jammu and Kashmir Police as a welfare measure vide three different orders issued by Police Headquarters. Under these orders, Rs 5000 each has been sanctioned in favour of 136 COVID-19 affected police personnel. Among them 31 are from IRP 5th Bn Doda, 30 from SSP Crime Kashmir, 20 from DPO Anantnag, nine each from JKAP 12th Bn., Traffic Hqrs. J&K, JKAP 7th Bn., eight from DPO Shopian, five each from JKAP 11th Bn., DPO Budgam, three from SSP Traffic City Srinagar, two from DPO Baramulla, one each from APHQ J&K, IRP 6th Bn., PHQ J&K, IGP AP/IR Kashmir and PTS Manigam. Pertinent to mention here that from June this year Rs. 20.15 lakh financial assistance has been sanctioned in favour of 403 officers/police personnel who contracted the coron- avirus infection. DGP sanctions financial relief of Rs 6.80 lakh to COVID-19 affected cops J&K Teachers Forum holds 'Teachers Conference' Confers best teacher awards to 18 teachers DDC Baramulla Dr G.N Itoo along with others during a programme. STATE TIMES NEWS SRINAGAR: Kulgam police solved a theft case on Saturday by arresting thieves and recovered stolen property worth lakhs from their possession. As per details, Police Station Yaripora received a written complaint on August 29, that some unknown burglars entered resi- dential house of one Maroofa Akhtar, resi- dent of Kanjikulla Yaripora and decamped with cash and gold ornaments. Accordingly, a case vide FIR No. 119/2020 under relevant sections of law was registered at Police Station Yaripora and investigation was initi- ated. During the course of investigation, a Police team led by SHO Yaripora was constituted and with strenuous efforts, credible informa- tion regarding burglars was generated. The team apprehended two suspects identified as Aquib Ahmad Mir, son of Abdul Rashid Mir, resident of Kanjikulla Yaripora Kulgam and Umer Yaqoob Naik, son of Mohd Yaqoob Naik, resident of Khaloora Kulgam. During investigation, it was learnt that they were involved in the crime. Later, officers investigating the case, iden- tified one more accused namely Nafeez Ahmad Dar, son of Mohd Ramzan Dar, resi- dent of Brazloo Jageer, who bought stolen property from aforesaid burglars. Stolen property including gold ornaments worth lakhs and cash amounting to Rs 17,000 were also recovered from their possession. All the accused were arrested and shifted to Police Station where they remained under custody. Further investigation of the case is under progress and more recoveries are expected. Theft case solved; accused arrested, stolen property recovered Arrested thieves along with stolen property.
